In 1919, Nebraska enacted a statute known as the Siman Act, which restricted the use and study of foreign languages in the classroom. A year later in Hampton, Nebraska, a parochial school instructor named Robert Meyer was convicted under the law for teaching German to an 11-year-old boy.
The case made it all the way to the United States Supreme Court in Meyer v. Nebraska, which ruled in Meyer’s favor in 1923. The Court declared the law violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which states that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.
On today's show, author, teacher and education policy advocate Jessica Lander is in conversation with Maria Corpuz about her new book "Making Americans: Stories of Historic Struggles, New Ideas, and Inspiration in Immigrant Education," which covers Meyer v. Nebraska and other key historical moments to look at the past, present and future of immigrant education in America.
"Making Americans" is available now wherever you get books.